A Grand Rapids, Michigan-based company wants to be invited to your wedding.
Grand River Signs is offering LGBT couples a 10 percent discount on personalized wedding décor as part of its new strategic direction and mission to help further LGBT equality.
Russell Ramsay, owner of Grand River Signs, said he had no idea employee Todd Draves was gay until they started brainstorming how to attract new clients.
Ramsay had a big name West Michigan client in mind who he thought would be a great company to attract, but Draves was less than enthusiastic when he heard the suggestion.
Draves told Ramsay the potential client was well known for large contributions opposing same sex marriage and supporting "traditional families."
"I went home and I studied it a bit more," Ramsay said. "Todd and I were talking about it the next day and I said you know what, we aren't going to target this company anymore, because their values don't reflect my personal values."
Ramsay told Draves the issue hit home because his brother is gay and he didn't want to support a company that wouldn't support his brother's right to love and get married.
"That is when I came out to Russ," Draves said. "I gave him the backstory that it took me this long to come out because in the state of Michigan you can be discriminated against because you are gay. You can be fired."
Ramsay said he had been completely unaware that Michigan did not have non-discrimination protections for LGBT employees.
Not too long after that conversation, Ramsay's brother Craig Ramsay and his boyfriend Brandon Liberati announced they were getting married in Palm Springs, California.
"We wanted to go and celebrate with them and we were brainstorming what we could provide, how we could make the celebration special," Ramsay said. "Todd had come up with some fantastic ideas for decorations for their wedding."
The couple had decided on a retro Las Vegas theme and Draves came up with customized decorations.
"I created a brand for them, incorporating their initials," Draves said. "We incorporated that on window graphics, fabric banners, centerpiece displays, floor decals. We did something for their vehicle that incorporated the rainbow flag."
Ramsay said his brother and brother-in-law loved the decorations and he got several compliments from wedding attendees as well.
Being part of the wedding celebration and the recent conversations he'd had with Draves about the fear he had about coming out at work had a big impact on Ramsay.
"Reflecting on that event for myself and my family, being a part of that event, I guess I didn't realize the struggles my brother had gone through and the fact they are lucky being in California that they can get married," Ramsay said. "[And] I was struck by the fact that Todd couldn't be himself at work for fear of persecution. The inequality that exists is mind-boggling and I'd never sat down to think about that."
Ramsay had gone into business two years before with the hope of being able to give back and he said he finally figured out what the right fit was for doing that.
"We want to help with the fight against inequality," he said.
Grand River Signs is now focused on attracting LGBT clients.
The company offers personalize wedding decorations to same sex couples all across the country and also in Canada. Decorations include personalized hanging prints, sidewalk graphics, custom cut monograms and centerpiece graphics, vehicle graphics and decals, table banners and fabric backdrops.
Draves, who is the lead graphic designer, will consult with clients via Skype, gaining insight into their personality and honing in on themes, and then will create several mockups for the couple to choose from.
"To properly plan and get the essence of the couple, their objective and theme, we would want at least four weeks for design, production and shipping," Draves said.
Grand River Signs can also work with the wedding venues and wedding planners on logistics and other needs.
In addition to personalized wedding décor, Grand River Signs is also focused on providing signage for pride events, drag shows, and other LGBT-related activities, and will give groups a 20 percent off discount for posters, banners and signs supporting those types of events.
"We are working on a new web design where some of this stuff can be ordered online," Ramsay said.
Right now LGBT related services account for about 20 percent of Grand River Signs' business. Ramsey would like to see that grow to more than 50 percent.
"This is a huge focus for us," he said.
Both Ramsay and Draves hope Grand River Signs can be a leader for other businesses who want to show support for LGBT equality, especially in conservative towns like Grand Rapids.
To learn more about Grand River Signs, visit grandriversigns.com .